Typically, a combine harvester has at its front end an intake feeder system that cuts crop from the around and feeds it to a threshing mechanism. The intake feeder system comprises a header and a feeder elevator that raises the crop to the level of the mouth of the threshing mechanism. Commonly, the header, which takes different forms depending on the type of crop, is wider than the elevator and is provided with two augers arranged one at each side of the header to push the cut crop towards the central elevator. The threshing mechanism separates the grain from the stalks, or straw, and the chaff. The grain is stored in a tank on board the harvester while the straw and the chaff are discharged from the rear end of the harvester.
The threshing is carried out by passing the crop between a rotating cylinder and a surrounding concave. The cylinder has threshing elements on its surface that separate the grain by beating and crushing the crop against the surrounding concave, and the latter has openings through which the separated grain can fall to be transferred to the storage tank. Depending on the design of the harvester, the cylinder may be disposed longitudinally or transversely.
If rocks or large stones are picked up by the intake feeder system, they can damage the threshing mechanism. To prevent such foreign materials from being conveyed to the threshing mechanism, a feed beater is typically provided between the aft end of the feeder elevator and the threshing mechanism to separate the foreign materials from the harvested crop materials. For instance, the feed beater may be configured to impact rocks and large stones, forcing such materials downwardly into a rock sump positioned below the beater.
After operating the harvester for a given time period, the rock sump can become full of rocks and other foreign materials and, thus, must be cleaned. Typically, a rock sump includes a door at its bottom end that is configured to be manually opened to allow the collected foreign materials to fall out of the sump via gravity. However, in many instances, the foreign materials contained within the rock sump become lodged or trapped within the sump, thereby preventing the collected materials from dropping out of the sump when the door is opened. In such instances, the operator is required to manually dislodge the collected material from within the sump, which is often very time consuming and labor intensive.
Accordingly, a self-cleaning rock sump that allows rocks, stones and/or other foreign material to be efficiently and effectively evacuated or cleaned from the sump would be welcomed in the technology.